Conservative or Liberal, Deist or Pagan, Jersey transplant or Lehigh Valley native, we're all in this mess together. Let's talk. Let us do no harm. Today's one-liner: "The shortest way to the distinguishing excellence of any writer is through his hostile critics." Richard LeGallienne

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Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Bethlehem Gives Gordie Mowrer Unusual Good-Bye

Bethlehem said goodbye to Gordie Mowrer, known as The Main Street Mayor, in a memorial service on July 26 at Bethlehem's Central Moravian Church. Over 350 people braved 90-degree temperatures to pay their respects, but Mowrer, a former Moravian Pastor known for his gentle humor, had a surprise for them.

Central Moravian Church, with its wonderful acoustics, is a regular host for the Bach Choir, Christmas Vespers and Handel's Messiah. Love of music is part of a rich Moravian tradition. It's where Haydn's oratorio, The Creation, made its debut in this country. So the rich organ prelude at the beginning of the service, performed by Rebecca Kleintop Owens, could be expected. But as soon as she was finished, The Mainstreet Brass began performing "Dead Man Blues." Jelly Roll Morton would say, "I believe I hear that trambone moan," and moan it did. A New Orleans funeral dirge was certainly weather appropriate, but what about the family? Did the Moravians finally go too far with their love of music?

His daughter Margaret, the baby of the family, explained. Mowrer wanted that music and asked for it himself. "When the Saints Go Marching In" was trumpeted as everyone else marched out at the end of the service.

"While he was dying, he would still sing to me," said his baby daughter. In phone calls to her, he'd start singing, "You are my sunshine" or "I just called to say I love you." She became a social worker after watching him help people while he was Chaplain at St.Luke's Hospital. "He had empathy and compassion. That's what this world needs.”

Daughter-in-law Betty described a one-man welcome wagon who was always offering the apartment above his garage to people in need.

Son George described his father as a risk-taker who "always did what he thought was right." His father once told him, "Relationships matter. People matter."

Mowrer served as Bethlehem's Mayor between 1974 and 1978, and then again for a year in 1987. He also served several terms on City Council.

Though he had degrees from Dickinson College and Lehigh University, Mowrer would return to the Moravian Theological Seminary in the '90s, and was ordained by Advent Moravian Church in 1992.

Mowrer is called "The Main Street Mayor" because he rebelled against "urban renewal" premised on tearing down buildings and replacing them with something more "modern." Historic downtown Bethlehem, with its specialty shops along Main Street, would have been bulldozed for big department stores. Mowrer reversed that trend in his single term as Mayor.

"There's only one thing Bethlehem has to sell, and that is its history," he writes in The Comeback Kid, his autobiography. "The uniqueness of Bethlehem is our history; that's what we have to sell, and if we try to sell anything else we are going to fail. Bethlehem is not a shopping center, it is not a brand-new community, we are an old city that has charm and delight, and we need to sell that."

Yes and No. The idea of closing Broad Street and converting it into the Bethlehem Plaza Mall is exactly the kind off urban development he opposed. He ran against Gordon Payrow on this issue, but Payrow defeated Mowrer. When Mowrer was elected four years later, he finished what Payrow had started. In his book, he admits he liked the skating rink, but that was pretty much it. The urban renewal was intended to extend into Main Street next, and Mowrer shifted the focus from wrecking ball to preservation. He made many enemies among developerw looking to make a payday, but probably saved Bethlehem.

Mowrer seems a man any city would love to have as its leader. His comment about Bethlehem's "uniqueness" tells me he could see and understand what others fail to. It made wonder about Allentown....and what someone like Pawlowski would say its "uniqueness" is. A shame Allentown hasn't had a man with the vision that Mowrer had.

12:52,Not sure what you are trying to say. I have changed the font on my blog title and like it. It will stay. I am experimenting with my headlines. I would like the font to be a bit bolder. If you are trying to tell me what to do, it helps if you write in English.

Bernie, first of all deepest condolenses to the family):I have redd the comments and they are all just jellious because you bernie are huge in comparison?!

The font king is probably one of the triboros infamous epicenter writter that writ the college vote in, becomming the fifth, being a goiter?! This is not the gaget giberish eithier, just had a flashback sorry?!)$RE:publican redd no party afilliation

Those in the know in Bethlehem have always been divided about Mowrer. In his early years as Mayor, he was seen as the young man on the move. He was known as arrogant and dismissive. The young man on the move. One of the reason he only had one term. Partially due to his being form one of the patrician families in town. Later in life he found God and seemed to take on the mantel of elder statesman and religious voice of government. Of course in Bedlam if you have the right name you can come and go in office at your leisure.

I find an anonymous comment slamming a man on the day after his funeral to be extremely distasteful. It speaks volumes about you. I would think anyone who truly knows you would be dismissive of you after reading your errant assessments of people and places.

Bernie,Just tell it like it is as your notorious for, this troll is one of the spinkters now fifth surroundings and not only a goiter, butt probably a goter also?! Using today's gadgetry slang to describe trolls with no honor, integrity or anythingelse that make up the makeup of a carnival?!Although I am sure some carniey's are heavily laden while in travels?!RE:publican redd no party affiliation